BLOG: It's Time to Hate the Tonys

‪Tony! Toni! Toné!‬ OK, let's get all this Tony Award nonsense out of the way, and then never speak of it again. Long story short: the Tony Awards happened; people received awards; they are awards only for shows that run in a limited number of theaters in one district in one city; the nominations are decided by a tiny group of insiders; odds are pretty good that the 7 million people who tuned in have not seen most (if any) of the shows that were up for awards. If you've been reading my coverage of the Tonys, then by now you should know that I don't think very much of them. Sure, there were some good performances that, at their best, highlighted the importance of live performance; and, yes, there were some noteworthy award moments, like Audra McDonald becoming the first performer in history to complete a grand slam (wins in all four acting categories); but here's the thing I can't shake about the Tonys, the thing that will always bother me about them: they don't represent the whole theater industry, but everyone pretends that they do. Because of this, a small cabal of 40 stages in New York is allowed to pull the strings of the US theater industry. Because of this, the regional theaters, which were founded to create voices distinct from New York, have devolved into farm teams for the big leagues. Channels of production and access for new work are squeezed. The vision of the entire industry is limited to that of the same parade of white men who have always run it. And we're allowing it to cloud our own vision. Believe It Or Not! Female Playwrights! Playwright Lynn Nottage wrote a great piece for the New York Times in which she examines the lack of diversity (especially the lack of female playwrights) reflected in the Tonys. As she points out, in a year when the Pulitzer prize for drama went to a woman (and, in fact, both of the runner-ups were also women), not a single new musical or play on Broadway this season was written by a woman. Nottage is one of the Tony award voters (though, not one of the few who actually decides the nominees), but, as she says, "It sometimes feels as if we’re being asked to assemble a guest list for a party to which we’re not invited." Over at TCG's Circle, they dug up a white male to write a response to Nottage's commentary, and instead of arguing with her, he agreed. Ever since the infamous moment at D.C.s "Summit" earlier this year, when a panel of white guys declared that there just aren't enough female playwrights "in the pipeline", we've known without a doubt, what the problem is. It isn't that this "pipeline" is a myth. The problem is that the pipeline is very real and will persist as long as we hold up the Broadway system and the Tony Awards as the pinnacle of theatrical achievements. People have proposed all kinds of grand, sweeping changes for the theater industry that they believe will solve everything; but, to me, the answer is simple: stop caring about another city's awards show. Like Tinkerbell, it will start to whither away the moment you say "I don't believe in Tonys". Hometown Pride If you say you hate Broadway, you will probably be accused of hating musicals, and will therefore be told "You are dead inside." While I am a bit bitter and jaded, I am not quite dead inside. There are a few musicals I can listen to. My problem with Broadway isn't the shameless flash, the uninspired recycling of the past or the triumph of form over substance. That's just America. My problem with Broadway is that we have allowed it to limit the rest of the country's ability to come up with its own shameless flash. A recent article from PolicyMic has been jetting around the internet lately, detailing 17 cities from around the world that have amazing theater scenes and are not New York or London. My Minnesota friends, Minneapolis is one of them! (Even if they repeat the dubious "more theater seats per capita" factoid.) Seattle is recognized as being one of the best cities for actors. Louisville is home to one of the largest festivals of new plays. The Twin Cities and our contemporary cities have all the power and resources they need to take control of the industry, rather than being slaves to it. And we can, as long as we turn off the TVs next year when the Tonys come around again, go out into our own cities, and enjoy our own theater. As a bonus, we'll never have to deal with some of the weird crap the Tonys put on stage. Who Will Be the New Joe? So, who can lead that charge here in the Twin Cities? We have a $125 million dollar facility in a blue box ready to go, though "new", "original" and "distinct" are probably not going to happen under its current administration. This is not to knock the Guthrie's outgoing AD. Joe Dowling has been a fine administrator and builder of buildings, but he's a product of the theater system's status quo, not a challenger or innovator to it. As Joe Dowling steps down after next season, his replacement is an opportunity for the Guthrie to really set a new course, so there is a lot of speculation about who that new person will be. Could it *gasp* be someone who doesn't even have a penis?! The Star Tribune is leading the charge with its wild speculations about who will fill Dowling's shoes. As they are assembling their list of potentials (which are, admittedly, still mostly white guys), I am thinking of starting a betting pool. Who will give me 10-to-1 on Kwame Kwei-Armah? Bloody Bloody A big part of the reason that I advocate for slipping the yoke of Broadway is illustrated by what's going on at the New Century Theater right now. Minneapolis Musical Theater, who produced the surprisingly successful revamp of the infamous flop Carrie last year, is back with the regional premiere of the Broadway hit Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson. If you're not familiar with the show, it's a satirical emo rock musical about the first violent lunatic we made President of the United States (seriously, that's what it is). It was nominated for Tonys. It got critical praise in New York. And now it's popping up all over, just like the Broadway machine is supposed to work. Except that here in Minneapolis, there is a movement afoot to protest the musical. According to local Native playwright Rhiana Yazzie (who also wrote about this here at Minnesota Playlist), the musical offensively represents Native Americans and glosses over some of the more brutal atrocities committed against Native people by Jackson's administration. I will admit that I, personally, have not read or seen this musical, so I cannot add any support or refutation to Yazzie's argument; but what I can say is this: when the play originally ran in New York, it was protested by Native groups there. I can't imagine why any producer here would think that the city where the American Indian Movement was founded would be any different. But it was on Broadway, so it must be good, right? So, stick that note in the program apologizing for Jackson's "horrendous and atrocious acts committed against American Indians" and get on with the show. Never mind asking if this was a show that was wanted by this community now. (See also, Miss Saigon, which the Broadway-Industrial complex is gearing up to reboot here in the US again, whether we want it or not) Just Stop So, once again, I'll say: stop watching the Tonys, and we can knock off a lot of this nonsense before it ever starts. And, for a rebuttal to my thesis, I give you this New York actor's defense of the awards. Even it starts off by admitting that the Tonys are "the awkward step-sister of award shows, all insider-y New York show-biz in an industry that already hands out trophies like the free bread sticks at Olive Garden."